Rough Terrain (Vista Falls #1)

by Cheryl Douglas

  “Wes has worked his ass off for everything’s he’s got.”

  “How do you know? You barely know the guy.”

  As soon as Nick had found out Wes was his birth father, he’d done his homework, watching every video and reading every article he could find about him online. By now, Nick could probably have written Wes’s biography without any input from the man himself. “I know what kind of guy he is.”

  “You haven’t said much about Sage. What’s she like?”

  He thought of the book she’d written. The story she’d told… about her feelings for him. “She and Wes seem like a real couple. It’s hard to believe they’re not.”

  “How do you know they’re not sleeping together? Just because they’re not married doesn’t mean they’re not messing around.”

  “I guess.” That would certainly have explained the chemistry between them. “Doesn’t matter anyhow. The only thing that matters is they seem stoked about getting to know me, and I feel the same way.”

  “I would too if I were you.” She snorted. “Can you imagine the kind of wheels that guy will buy you when you get your license? Especially with all the guilt he must feel about bailing on you.”

  “He didn’t bail on me.”

  There was a big difference between putting a baby up for adoption and being a deadbeat dad who didn’t even try to live up to his responsibilities. Nick couldn’t pretend he hadn’t spent a lot of time thinking about why Sage and Wes hadn’t reached out to him before, but he hoped to be able to ask them that question someday.

  “Call it what you want,” she said, sighing. “He probably feels guilty for splitting, and I say milk it.”

  This conversation was leaving a bitter taste in Nick’s mouth. “I gotta go. I’m tired.”

  “Yeah, sure. Will I see tomorrow?”

  “Probably not ‘til tomorrow night. Text me in the morning.”

  “Okay, love you.”

  For the first time, Nick found it difficult to mimic the sentiment. “You too. Night.”

  Chapter Eleven

  “Okay, tell me everything,” Gabby said, depositing two takeout coffees on Sage’s desk along with an aromatic paper bag.

  Sage dove into the bag, inhaling the chocolate scent as if she’d been on a hunger strike. “Oh my God, that smells so good. I haven’t had one of these in weeks.”

  Gabby peeled the lid back on her coffee. “Enough about the pastry. Tell me about Nick. And Wes. I know there were things you couldn’t say last night with him being right there and all.”

  When they’d been dating, Sage had rarely held back with Wes. She told him everything she told Gabby. But things were different now. “Like I said, Nick’s a great kid. And he seems open to getting to know us better, which is a huge relief. I was afraid maybe he was just luring us out there to tell us he hated us for giving him up.”

  “How was he with Wes?” Gabby took a sip of her coffee. “They hit it off?”

  “To tell you the truth, I think there was a bit of hero worship going on there.” Sage had caught Nick hanging on Wes’s every word and knew Wes must have sensed it too, though he didn’t mention it.

  “Can you blame him? Any kid would be proud to have a dad like that. Small-town boy makes it big? It’s a great story.”

  “Wes wasn’t the only small-town boy who made it big.” They hadn’t talked much about Colt since he’d returned, and Sage wanted to know how her friend really felt about her ex living a stone’s throw away.

  “No, he wasn’t,” Gabby said, taking her croissant out of the bag and setting it on a paper napkin. She popped a bite into her mouth. “I’m really proud of Colt too. I think what they’ve accomplished is fantastic. And coming back here to help the people in Vista Falls who’ve been having a tough time by employing all those people…” She smiled. “It’s like Christmas came early for those folks.”

  “Yeah, your real-life hero,” Sage teased.

  “Shut up,” Gabby said, rolling her eyes. “You can’t tell me you’re not impressed they uprooted their lives and business to bring it back to Vista Falls.”

  “I think it’s awesome they did that.” Sage suspected they had reasons aside from bolstering the local economy though. “But you know how much Wes’s family has always meant to him. The fact that his dad’s gone now…”

  “I know. Hey, that reminds me, have you heard whether Colt’s seen his old man since he came back to town?”

  “No, though I can’t imagine why he’d want to. I know if it was me, I’d stay as far away from him as I could get.”

  “Speaking of nasty parents, how’re yours?” Gabby asked, raising an eyebrow. “Are they still giving you a hard time?”

  “I haven’t spoken to them since the blowup at dinner, and I’m not going to be the one to reach out. I said my piece. If they want to talk, they can call me.”

  “Good for you.” Gabby polished off her croissant before she said, “We should play hooky and go to the lake for a picnic today. Catch a few rays, relax a little. What do you say?”

  “God, we haven’t done that in ages.”

  “I know, right?” Gabby laughed. “Remember when we were in high school and the four of us would spend the day there? We’d have the tunes blaring all day, get a tan, then get a little tipsy while the guys caught our dinner and fried up the fish over the fire they’d built.”

  Sage smiled at the sweet memories. “Fish fry never tasted so good.”

  “You said it, sister. So finish up what you have to do here,” Gabby said, collecting the garbage and tossing it in her wastebasket. “I’ll pass by my house and pick up the swimsuit you left there, and I can loan you a pair of shorts and flip-flops. I’ll be back around eleven thirty. Does that work?”

  “Sounds perfect.”

  ***

  Wes walked through the lobby of his brother’s quaint little inn. It wasn’t the same place Wes remembered growing up. Rush was a master carpenter, and he had hammered every nail and stripped every wood surface himself, slowly bringing the place back to life.

  “’Bout time you dragged your sorry ass down here,” Rush said, pulling Wes into a half hug as they clasped hands. “So what do you think? I’ve still got a few more projects I need to tackle, like the roof and the wraparound deck, but—”

  “Man, it looks great. Seriously.” Wes tossed him the keys to his old truck, which was part of the reason for his visit.

  “What’s this?” Rush asked, holding up the pewter keyring with the Backwoods Outdoors logo.

  “The keys to my old truck. I bought a new one, so I thought you might have a use for this one.”

  “Seriously? That’s awesome, but why didn’t you just trade it in?”

  Wes shrugged. His brother was too proud to accept a handout, and he knew Rush wouldn’t take the truck if it felt like charity. “It’s no big deal, little brother. Just say thank you and shut up about it.” He curled his arm around Rush’s neck, leading him into the small office.

  “Well, thank you,” Rush said, tossing the keys on the pine desk he’d made with salvaged wood. “You picked the right day to stop by.” Rush pointed out the window at the lake. “I hear the fish are biting. Feel like wetting a line?”

  “You know I’ll never turn down an offer like that.”

  “Cool. Why don’t you text Colt too? It’ll be just like the old days when I used to tag along, hoping to learn something from you two boneheads.”

  Wes laughed as he fired off a quick text to Colt, telling him to get his ass down to the inn.

  “So what’s this mama tells me about you reconnecting with your boy?” Rush said, leaning back in the squeaky swivel chair, lacing his hands over his flat stomach. “When were you gonna tell me about that?”

  Wes and Rush had always been close, so Wes wasn’t trying to keep secrets from him. He’d just wanted to meet Nick before he jinxed it. “As a matter of fact, me and Sage went up to Brock to meet him last night. It went well, real well. He’s a great kid. If all goes accordi
ng to plan, he’ll be coming here next weekend, so you can meet him yourself.”

  “You need to bring him by the inn,” Rush said. “I’ve got a new cook. She’s great.”

  “Sounds like a plan.” Wes hesitated to bring it up, but he knew he had to. “Why didn’t you tell me you went out with Sage? I had to hear from Rusty that you two had been in there together.”

  Raking a hand through his black hair before stroking the stubble on his chin, Rush said, “I felt weird even asking her. Ten minutes into the date, I think we both knew it was a huge mistake. As soon as we acknowledged that, we relaxed and had fun just as friends. We spent a lot of time reminiscing—talking about you, in fact.”

  “Is that so?” Wes wanted to press for details, but he didn’t want to come off as desperate.

  Rush laughed, pointing at him. “You can’t fool me, man. I know you’re dyin’ to know what she said.”

  “Okay, smartass,” Wes said, mock-scowling at him. “What did she say?”

  “That she really screwed up with you. She said she loved you and never should have let her parents convince her that y’all were too young to know what real love was.”

  Wes was relieved to hear she’d realized that a long time ago, not just when he’d come back to town. “She wasn’t the only one to blame. I let her old man intimidate me. I shouldn’t have done that.”

  “Water under the bridge, right?” Rush asked. “You were both kids back then, still trying to figure things out.”

  “True.”

  “And now?”

  Wes laughed, wishing he had a better answer. “We’re still trying to figure things out. Just taking it one day at a time.”

  “What the hell does that mean?” Rush asked, frowning. “Don’t tell me you’re still in denial. Anyone can see that you two belong together, man. You always have. Isn’t that what Dad told you before he died? That you needed to man up and set things right with Sage and your son?”

  “And that’s what I’m trying to do,” Wes said, remembering the last conversation he’d had with their dad when he was lying in that godforsaken hospital bed and talking about his few regrets. “But I’m trying to rebuild my friendship with Sage first. That has to be the foundation. And we need to figure out how Nick fits into our lives. We want him to be a part of it, but it’s up to him what that looks like.”

  “I have an idea,” Rush said, snapping his fingers. “Why don’t you invite Sage over today? No better way to move your relationship along than reminding her how much fun you used to have together, am I right?”

  After the intense day they’d had yesterday, maybe a little fun in the sun was exactly what they needed. “Sure, I’ll ask.”

  By the time Colt strolled through the office door a few minutes later with a case of beer in hand, Wes had to tell him that a couple of other people would be joining their party, and he wasn’t sure how Colt would take that bit of news.

  “I’m going to head into the kitchen, see what Elsie’s got planned for lunch,” Rush said, standing. “I’m sure I can get her to throw something together for us.”

  Colt slapped Rush on the back before he left the room. “You ready to get your ass handed to you again today?” Colt asked Wes, grinning.

  “Why does everything have to be a competition with you?” Wes joked. Friendly competition had always been the lifeblood of their relationship. “Gotta have something to do with the fact that I threaten your masculinity, bein’ that I’m sexy and rugged and a jock and all.”

  After setting the case of beer on the floor, Colt doubled over, laughing. “That was a good one. Thanks, man.” He smacked Wes upside the head before he sat down. “I needed that. Now tell me what happened with your boy last night. I was waitin’ to hear from you. Why didn’t you call?”

  “I passed by the office before I came here,” Wes said. “Thought you’d be there.”

  “Stopped by to see the old man.”

  Wes sucked in a breath, rubbing the stubble on his jaw. “Damn. I’m not even sure I should ask.”

  “I’ll tell you about that later. I want to hear what went down with Nick first.” He wiggled his eyebrows comically. “And Sage. You two didn’t have a chaperone all night, am I right?”

  Wes smiled, thinking the evening couldn’t have gone any better if he’d scripted it. “Nick is one hell of a kid. Felt like I’d known him forever. Given the chance, I think we could be tight. Real tight.”

  “Man, that’s great,” Colt said, leaning forward to slap his buddy on the back. “You’re getting everything you came here for, huh? You’re getting back with Sage.” He gestured to Rush’s messy office. “Reconnecting with your family. Even getting to know your son.”

  Wes knew Colt well enough to hear all the things he wasn’t saying. He knew Colt only wanted the best for him, but watching things coming together for Wes while Colt’s life seemed to be stuck in neutral had to be hard.

  “I hope you don’t mind, but I invited Sage and Gabby to hang out with us today. They should be here in a few,” Wes said.

  Colt grimaced, rubbing the back of his neck. “Bound to bring back a lot of memories, don’t you think?”

  “How many times have you told me those were some of the best times of your life?” Wes knew that Colt sometimes needed a nudge in the right direction, and he’d always been the man for the job. “You shouldn’t mind taking a trip back.”

  Colt blew out a long, slow breath. “That girl still does it for me, I’m not gonna lie.”

  Wes grinned, happy to hear Colt finally admitting the truth. “So what’re you gonna do about it?”

  “What can I do about it?” He clasped his hands as he leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “The thing that always scared me about Gab was that I looked at her and saw forever. I still do. I know if we hooked up again, it wouldn’t be some casual thing. I can’t even touch her ‘til I feel like I’m ready to go all in.”

  “Just know that you can’t expect her to wait around while you pull your head out of your ass. She went out with some dude last night.” When Colt scowled, Wes raised his hand. “It didn’t go well, but she’s ready to put herself out there again. You know as well as I do there were guys lined up in high school to take Gabby away from you. I’m sure that hasn’t changed.”

  Colt jumped up when they heard female laughter in the hall. “I hear ya. I just need a little more time to figure out whether I can really do this.”

  ***

  They were toasting marshmallows around the bonfire, listening to some of their favorite tunes, while the sun set. They’d had a huge fish fry thanks to the boys’ skill, and Rush’s cook had contributed baked potatoes and corn on the cob to make it a real feast.

  Sage was sitting between Wes’s legs, her back against his chest, when she realized she was surrounded by some of her favorite people in the world. The fact that Rush and Colt were two of the most important people in Wes’s life had always made them feel like her family too, and Gabrielle, who was snuggled up in Colt’s sweatshirt—under the guise of staying warm—was more than her best friend. She was her sister.

  “Penny for your thoughts,” Gabby whispered while the guys argued about college football and which team had the best shot of going the distance.

  “I’m just happy,” Sage whispered back. “Happier than I’ve been in a long time.”

  They’d swum, fished, spent some time on Rush’s boat, listened to Rush strum his acoustic guitar and sing some of their favorite songs, eaten, knocked back a few cold ones, and talked about the past. It was the most fun Sage had had in a long time… with the exception of last night’s football game.

  “I can tell. You wear it well.” Gabby took her hand and sneaked a peek at Wes. Satisfied that he wasn’t listening in, she said, “He’s a big part of the reason, you know. Don’t let him get away again.”

  Wes was the only man in the world who’d ever broken her heart completely, and Sage knew he still had the power to do it all over again.

  �
�We’re taking it slow,” Sage said, mimicking Wes. “Making sure it’s right this time.”

  “When a man lights you up the way that one does, believe me, it’s right.”

  “Oh yeah?” Sage glanced at Colt, who was sitting between Wes and Rush. “I’m not the only one who’s been lit up like a Christmas tree all day. You’ve barely taken your eyes off him, you know.”

  Gabby sighed before releasing Sage’s hand. “That obvious, huh?”

  “You still have feelings for him.” Sage didn’t have to ask if she was right. She could see the truth every time Gabby and Colt looked at each other. “So what are you going to do about it?”

  “Nothing.” She pulled her knees up to her chest, wrapping her arms around them as she stared into the crackling fire. “I can’t. Not after what happened with—”

  “You told me you wouldn’t be afraid to put yourself out there again when the time was right. You promised you wouldn’t let that divorce ruin your chances for happiness.”

  “It hasn’t,” she said with a trace of stubbornness that told Sage she was digging her heels in, preparing for a fight. “I’m dating again. When was the last time you went out on a date before Wes came back to town?”

  Sage wasn’t even sure she and Wes were dating. She just knew she wasn’t interested in anyone else. “You’re dating guys you’re not really into. That doesn’t count.”

  “So?” Gabby said, shrugging. “Maybe I’m practicing for the real thing.”

  “Colt is the real thing, and you two don’t need any practice. You’ve had plenty.”

  Gabby grabbed Sage’s hand, pulling her to her feet.

  “Hey, where’re you two going?” Wes asked, reaching for Sage’s other hand.

  “Washroom,” Gabby said. “You know girls do these things in pairs.”

  “Well, hurry back,” Wes said, kissing Sage’s hand.

  “Hey,” Rush said, eyeing the empty case of beer, “all of you guys have had a lot to drink. I had a last-minute cancellation tonight, so I’ve got a couple of extra rooms. You’re welcome to them.” Sage and Wes exchanged a look before Rush said, “There are two queen beds in each room, so you girls can bunk together and the guys can take the other room.” When Wes glared at his brother, Rush chuckled. “Or not. Whatever you want.”